


catch your breath

by LadyKG



Series: AizenxIchigo Time Travel [2]
Category: Bleach
Genre: Fix-It of Sorts, Light Angst, M/M, Time Travel, character interactions, don't know what to tag, sequel to here we stand, that's all this really is
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-08
Updated: 2018-12-08
Packaged: 2019-09-14 10:43:33
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,177
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16911447
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyKG/pseuds/LadyKG
Summary: Later. Later, when the dust settled, and Ichigo explained why Sousuke was there, what was coming. Later, his younger self came to him, his friends from the human world trailing behind with confused but determined faces.(A series of interactions between future!Ichigo, future!Sousuke, and other characters.)





	catch your breath

Later. Later, when the dust settled, and Ichigo explained why Sousuke was there, what was coming. Later, his younger self came to him, his friends from the human world trailing behind with confused but determined faces.

Sousuke looked from the coming group to him, and a hand skittered up his spine in silent support, “I’ll meet you in Las Noches.”

Ichigo knew what Sousuke was doing, knew that he was trying to give him the space to deal with this particular grief in his own way. Still, his hand found Sousuke’s and squeezed, “Stay.”

Meeting his gaze, Sousuke gave a slow nod before falling back to stand at his side, “If you wish.”

“I do,” Ichigo said, giving the man a small but warm smile.

His younger self’s brown gaze focused on their hands. “Is it true?” His younger self asked, stubbornly pulling his gaze away and to his face, “You’re from the future?”

Ichigo’s lips twitch; was he always scowling at that age? “Yes.”

Seemingly not expecting such a short answer, his younger self shifted in place, before his gaze locked onto the blade at his side, “Why do you have two blade?” The question was blurted out, and his younger self flushed the second he realized what he said.

“There’s more to our zanpakuto than you think,” he said, taking a large amount of glee in the way his younger self’s brows furrowed in confusion. It felt strangely satisfying to be cryptic, he could see why Sousuke and Urahara enjoyed it so much.

“That doesn’t tell me anything,” his younger self said with a deepening scowl. But he shook his head, “Why’d you come back, anyway? Yama-ji mentioned someone named Ywach, but he didn’t say much else.”

Sousuke snorted softly next to him, “Of course he wouldn’t.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” His younger self demanded.

Before Sousuke could respond, no doubt with something regarding Soul Society’s failures and corruption, he intervened, “We came back because we went to war with Ywach and lost.”

Silence fell over his friends, all of them shifting between looking at them and between themselves.

“What do you mean we lost?” Ishida was the first to speak up.

“Everyone died,” Ichigo gave a humorless laugh, “everyone died, and so we came back to fix it.”

 

 

 

Ichigo thought that the best part of coming back in time would be the look on Aizen and Ywach’s faces when they cut them down.

He was wrong.

The most self-satisfying part was the look on _Kisuke’s_ face when he walked out of the seikamon following the group of his younger self and friends.

It had been Sousuke’s idea to go back to the human world first. At the time Ichigo had just rolled his eyes, because sure, he could see the joy in shocking his father and Kisuke, but at the time he hadn’t thought it was the most pressing issue.

Now, however, he understood Sousuke’s point.

Especially when said man drew him into a scorching kiss.

They just barely escaped the kidou that Urahara sent their way. But even with the slight singe on his arm, Ichigo could say it was more than worth it.

 

 

 

His father’s reaction was more extreme than Urahara’s in all the ways that it wasn’t. It was strange, being nervous to face his family. But his younger self hadn’t taken no for an answer, and Ichigo felt an amount of gratitude towards the boy for it.

Isshin had done a strange double take when they walked in, taking in him and Sousuke in the gigais that Urahara had provided after a bit of convincing and a lot of explanations.

Ichigo thought that the man might attack, with the way his eyes sharpened, even without his zanpakuto he knew Isshin would win if only because Ichigo couldn’t bring himself to raise a hand against his father. Not after the war. Not after watching him fall with a reassuring smile on his face as if _Ichigo_ was the one bleeding out.

His younger self snapped, “Stop staring, hat-and-clogs said he told you what happened.”

Isshin looked from his younger son to the older, and Ichigo thought for a second he would be kicked out. But suddenly he was being dragged into a hug, tight and protective in a way that Ichigo hadn’t felt hi his father since he was nothing more than a child.

He tried to stop the tears, but they wouldn’t listen.

A sob wracked his form.

“Hey, you made him cry, you stupid goat-face,” his younger self said, the sound muffled from where Ichigo buried his head into his father’s shoulder.

Ichigo let the embrace last long enough to gain composure before stepping back. Taking no small amount of relief at the way Sousuke’s arm snaked around his waist in silent support. He watched as Isshin’s gaze followed the movement, surprise quickly covered up by understanding and amusement.

“Masaki,” the man cried out, “our son is going to marry a criminal! Masaki, where have I gone wrong?”

Ichigo took the outburst in stride, his lips twitching in amusement as his father acted like a fool. But he knew it meant the man approved. Grudgingly, Ichigo didn’t doubt, but still… approval.

 

 

 

Ichigo watched as Grimmjow smiled wide and bloodthirsty at his younger self who scowled back with equally hungry eyes. It was strange, he had to admit. Watching all the Espada interact with his friends, because apparently the threat of Ywach was enough for Soul Society to get off its ass and start understanding that hollows weren’t the mindless beasts that they made them out to be, and _that_ was enough – along with Ichigo’s own persuasion – to start talk for treaties. Which, of course, meant his friends would be making trips between Las Noches and Soul Society to mediate said talks.

Ichigo leaned his shoulder against one side of the opening that was supposed to be a window, watching as Grimmjow started dragging his younger self away. Most likely to fight again, he figured. It wouldn’t be the first time the two of those two destroyed a good portion of the desert. Although, Ichigo noted with a frown, they were heading the wrong way – away from the training grounds.

“Well, that’s unexpected,” Sousuke said from behind him.

“What is?” He asked, following the man’s line of sight back to his younger self and Grimmjow.

“Nothing you need to concern yourself with,” Sousuke told him easily, an arm going around his waist as another came up to press against his chest, right over his heart. “How long do we have before our meeting with the Captains?”

“Hey,” Ichigo said, scowling as he tried to twist around to face the man, “don’t change the subject.”

The arm around his waist tightened, fingers digging into his hip enough that it would definitely leave a bruise, “How long?” The question was breathed along his neck, as Sousuke pulled him flush against him.

Ichigo opened his mouth to protest once more but there were teeth tugging against his ear and- _oh._

“Long enough.”


End file.
